Holiday City Lights

I love the energy of cities, especially during the holidays. Cities like New York, Denver, Dallas, Honolulu - all seem to come alive in a grander sense during Christmas. The lights and decorations are beautiful against the backdrop of the cityscape. You add a mixture of snow and the city becomes a winter wonderland. Just breathtaking!

Google's Boutiques

Google debuted a new site last week, Boutiques. Boutiques is dedicated to fashion, style icons and e-window shopping. It's a really neat idea based on algorithms. I know what an algorithm is but I have no idea how they can improve your personal style, yet that is exactly what the programmers at Google have set out to do. I like that they have included bloggers and not just celebrities as part of the project. You can even create your own boutique.

Holiday Gift Sets

I love, love the holidays, for many reasons. One reason in particular is the affordable "gift set". So many department stores at this time of year offer gift sets for makeup, perfume and beauty products. I like that the sets gives you an opportunity to try multiple items in one bundle.

Exclusive to Nordstroms is this set from St. Tropez. At $40, its an incredible deal. If you bought all items separately you would pay well over $40. I think that St. Tropez is the best self tanner on the market. Sephora is another store that has multiple gift sets and makeup palettes.

GUYS, I hope you are paying attention. The gift set is a no-brainer present to pick up for your wife, girlfriend, sister, mother, etc.

Dallas Bloggers Social

I had the pleasure and opportunity to attend the Post Blogger social last week. It was an event for Dallas Bloggers (great idea right?!) to mingle, shop and sip champagne. It was hosted by two fabulous bloggers, Hello Splendor and Fabulous K. The event took place at Nest, a store located off McKinney in the Knox Henderson area. However Nest is much more than a store, it's an INSPIRATION FACTORY. All of the housewares, unique items, books, jewelry, even the displays - were all so well designed. I encourage everyone in the Dallas area to stop in soon and explore the space. A few of my favorite items from the night are photographed (albeit poorly) above. I love the Mondrian tray the most.

Does Wine Taste Better In Crystal Glasses?

Aplusrstore
Mikasa
Bed Bath and Beyond
Macy's
Riedel

A wise woman informed me that wine tastes better and more pronounced in crystal stemware. She conducted a side-by-side comparison right there for me in her kitchen. She poured a Chardonnay into a crystal glass and then into a glass that they give out free as door prizes. You know the kind, the kind most people serve wine in at large parties. The Chardonnay did indeed taste better in the crystal! Why did the wine taste better? Was it that the crystal is a higher grade material than glass?

Some connoisseurs believe that the shape of the bowl will bring out more of the aromas and flavors of the wine. The wine glass maker Riedel has crafted their whole business around making crystal glasses for different wine types. A lot of people agree that the glass does make a difference.

This article from Gourmet Magazine explains in detail why the shape and the material of the glass does influence the wine's taste and aroma. They conducted their own experiment and the conclusions can be found here.